Tar Sands Producers Have a Plan!

Tar sands producers have a plan - not a plan to reduce greenhouse gas emissions -but a plan to "get beyond the ducks."  You may remember the image of the ducks landing in Syncrude's toxic  tailing ponds and dying.  Dying in droves, in fact.  Per the Globe and Mail, Monday, Oct. 26, 2009 " the oil sands operators, of which there are eight big ones, formed an oil sands taks force and the federal and provincial governments joined that task force so we can work together to educate the public."
Canada is currently one of the ten worst global warming polluters on the planet.   The Tar Sands Watch states that "Greenhouse gas emissions from tar sands production are three times those of conventional oil and gas production [currently tar sands production emits 27 megatonnes per annum and is expected to rise to 108-126 megatonnes by 2015]. Thus, the tar sands are now poised to become Canada’s largest single emitter of greenhouse gas, compounding this country’s contribution to global warming. " 
And now, instead of reducing greenhouse gas emissions, the federal government is going to EDUCATE THE PUBLIC. Our politicians are dragging their feet to protect the interests of big oil in the tar sands in Alberta.

Mining Pollution: Canada and the USA

A federal court recently ruled that Ottawa must (MUST!!!) dislcose the amount and kinds of pollution created by mining companies - including the corporations mining the tar sands of Alberta for oil. http://www.cbc.ca/canada/edmonton/story/2009/06/18/edmonton-oilsands-tailings.html Apparently, the data will be provided on line .... a boon to environmental activists! Now if that data includes CO2 emissons as well.... In contrast, the coal mining industry in the USA doesn't have to worry about the federal government disclosing the locations of coal ash dumps in America. The Obama administration is not releasing that information to the American population on the grounds of "national security." http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2009/jun/18/coal-dump-location-obama-usa
And this decision is in spite of Obama promising less secrecy in government; a burst retaining dam on a coal ash dump in Tennessee; and the rift created between Obama and his environmental supoorters.